


Stop Being Cool

by gigantic



Category: Actor RPF, American Actor RPF, Disney RPF, Jonas Brothers
Genre: F/M, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2010-03-14
Updated: 2010-03-14
Packaged: 2017-10-15 00:39:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Underage
Chapters: 1
Words: 13,452
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/155275
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/gigantic/pseuds/gigantic
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The one where Logan Lerman goes for one thing and achieves the opposite.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Stop Being Cool

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks to insunshine for all of her input. This story is basically a bastardization of "[Boyfriend](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qqdsszZL-wM)" by Ben Taylor. [Logan Lerman](http://cdn.buzznet.com/media/jjr//2010/01/logan-alexandra/logan-lerman-alexandra-daddario-greece-02.jpg) was recently in _Percy Jackson_ and used to be in a show called _Jack & Bobby_, where he met his best friend Dean Collins. Here's [the Bonnie Hunt interview](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NMKZKg7YmkE) mentioned. [Nick Jonas](http://cdn.buzznet.com/media/jjr//2010/02/nick-bands/nick-jonas-battle-bands-05.jpg) is a seventeen-year-old popstar. This pairing idea came totally and completely from moneyfolder, who I hope will grace the internets with a much, much better showing than this sooner rather than later. \o/ In the meantime, this is a sort of belated birthday present for her. Happy birthday! You're old! Read about some teenage boys!

After The Bonnie Hunt Show, Logan's manager says, "Actually, we could probably get the Disney girl's number. Selena?"

"Mom, it's weird when you do the manager thing for real," Logan says, slipping on his jacket so they can get ready to head across town for another news segment. Promo, promo, promo. He doesn't even think there was this much press for _Hoot_.

Lisa smiles, laughing a little. She says, "I'm just offering. Bonnie said that girl liked you. She seems nice."

"Yeah," Logan says. He's seen her a few times. "I don't even know if she lives in LA."

"Everybody lives out here," Lisa says, and then she laughs again. "I'm not really cut out for this side of things though, as fun as it is for me to pretend. We can call the agency if you want to meet her."

Shaking his head, Logan says, "Thanks, but I don't think I'm that far gone already, that I need 'my people' to get in touch with a girl." He makes the air quotes and everything.

"I'm only throwing it out there," Lisa says, and then reaches out to fix the collar in Logan's jacket. "You're crooked, kid."

"Mom," Logan says, swatting at her hands, but he's also glad she doesn't let him walk around like a douchebag or anything.

;;

Really, Logan just gets Selena's number from his agent because it's the easiest thing. They don't run in the same circles exactly. It's a matter of plausibility. That's all. They're both busy people.

He keeps it in his bag for four days before tugging the number out on a Saturday. It's Brandon's fault, texting Logan about it incessantly the second Logan mentions he's had it stashed since the beginning of the week. He writes, _step 1: CALL HER, step 2: NOW._

That's mobile peer pressure if Logan's ever seen it. He can't really resist that kind of urgency if he wants to maintain his sense of self-respect, so he dials Selena's number and waits to get her answering machine.

"Hello?"

"Crap," Logan says, and then sits up straight. "I mean, hold on. Let me start over. Selena? This is Logan. Um, Lerman?"

Um, he knows his own name, what the hell. She scoffs, though, letting it bubble into a genuine, companionable laugh as she says, "Hi, Logan, um, Lerman! I'm Selena, uh, Gomez."

;;

On the one hand, Logan convinces this cute girl who works for Disney to go out with him, and who fucking cares if it's a coffee date, because the operative word is the second one. On the other hand, Selena brings a chaperone or something. This shortish, vaguely familiar and kind of stocky dude with curly hair that looks bored out of his mind stands at her side, and Logan assumes he's her TV brother or cousin or something, until Selena says, "This is Nick," and then Nick confirms it by holding out his hand.

"Nick Jonas," he says, with this vice grip on Logan's hand, and a light bulb goes off in Logan's head.

"Hey," Logan says, politely, since he's not a total heathen. However, he doesn't think he'd be out of line for questioning the presence of a Jonas Brother on his coffee date if he wanted. "How are you?"

"Good," Selena says, smiling like it isn't awkward. "Did you find the place okay? I've been wanting to check out this shop for a while, but I'm never in the area. We thought we'd just ride over; we were hanging out."

Logan says, "Oh, yeah, it's no problem. I live over here -- pretty close to here, so it's not a big thing at all for me."

"Have you ever been to Urth? We heard that even their loaf cakes and stuff are pretty good," Nick says.

"I can't say that I have," Logan says, thinking, _why are you here?_ as clearly as possible, and Nick just furrows his brow. "All the pastries, coffee house spots -- they're all kind of the same over this way. All trying to be organic, or whatever. All pretty good."

He and Dean decide to have junk food benders sometimes, looking up places that stay open into the nighttime so they can go on caffeine and sugar runs then settle to watch the entire _Godfather_ series in one night. Logan woke up with the head of a toy horse in his bed after that one, and he screamed so loud that his sister came into the room and asked him if a woman was hurt.

He's going to save that story for Selena for later though. For now, he says, "So you guys were hanging out, you said?"

"Yeah, we went to see the new Scorsese movie," Selena says, but it's Nick's hand that Logan has his eye on. Nick touches her back, low enough that Logan starts to reassess the chaperone thing.

Nick says, "Did you see _Shutter Island_?" and Logan doesn't even want coffee anymore anyway.

;;

"You asked a girl out on a date, and she brought her boyfriend?" Dean asks, and then laughs in Logan's face for two minutes.

Logan says, "Yeah, yeah. How's that case of crabs coming?"

"Eat me. I told you, it was just a weird reaction to something I fed myself," Dean says, snapping the waistband of his pants for good measure. "The doctor even said. I got a whole checkup. I'm healthy."

"It's not like crabs is incurable." Logan points. "You could have just gotten rid of them."

"Remember that time that girl brought another dude to your first date with her?" Dean asks. "Man, I'm glad that's never happened to me."

"I hope they misdiagnosed you, and you have syphilis and lose your mind," Logan says, lifting the corner of his mouth.

Dean isn't fazed at all, though, saying, "Don't take your disappointment out on me. Don't worry about it, man. There'll be other opportunities. He's probably an asshole anyway."

;;

Nick disproves this theory when he calls Logan while he's getting ready for a couple morning meetings. There are a few prospective scripts that might help him figure out where to go while Percy Jackson does what it can do in the box office, and according to his mom, it starts with picking the right button down shirt. Logan has a plain blue shirt and a red and gray alternative, and he really just wants to wear t-shirt.

His phone rings while he's contemplating how much trouble he could get in for just wearing his Killers shirt and calling it quits. Logan picks it up and says, "Blue or red shirt, Mom?"

"Light blue or dark blue?" is the response he gets, from a voice considerably more somber than his mother has ever sounded.

"Whoa," Logan says, pulling the phone away from his face. It's Selena's number. He's pretty sure she'd never sound that low either. "Selena?"

"Nick, actually. What about your shirt?" Nick says, as calm as ever. For a guy who seems to like coffees, Nick continues to sound like he could use a little more pep.

Logan says, "You've got Selena's phone? Did you need something?" and looks at himself in the mirror. "It's a dark blue."

"Go with that one," Nick says. "Less aggressive early in the morning."

"I want to go back to bed," Logan says, then finds himself completely thrown off by the sound that comes out of Nick's mouth before he realizes it has to be a chuckle.

Logan wonders if Nick has to smile to laugh, because he's pretty sure Nick didn't really crack one at all while they were out together. Then again, there's not a lot to smile about when you're on a joint first date with your girlfriend and some guy who got her number from an agent. Logan still isn't sure how he read that one all wrong.

"Busy day?" Nick asks. "We've got some filming ourselves. Separate projects, but kind of in the same location, which is why I wanted to call before we got started in a little bit. Selena and I are eating waffles."

"Oh, that's cool," Logan says, even though he's lying. Or, well, waffles sound pretty delicious right now, but he doesn't care what Nick does with Selena. "You wanted --"

Nick clears his throat and says, "We were planning to go golfing this weekend, and you said you wished you had more chances. Thought we'd invite you."

"Right." Logan's actually really confused by the offer. He smiles as he responds, though, because he's been taught that that helps to cover up cluelessness. "So, you're, uh. Where are you playing?"

"I can send you the information," Nick says. "It's cool if I steal your number from Selena's phone, right? Wanted to check."

Logan says, "Sure," when he really means that he's not sure what's happening at all. He only wanted to maybe see a movie with Selena and kiss her or something. He's not sure how that all got misconstrued. He's not sure where golfing comes into the picture.

"Great," Nick says. "I'll talk to you later. Don't forget: blue shirt."

He hangs up with that. Logan puts on the red and silver shirt, considers it in the mirror and then switches, but he wears his Killers shirt under just to make the change after easier.

;;

"Am I attractive to you? What about assertive?" Logan asks Brandon. "Like, if I asked you out right now, you'd be able to tell if I meant as a date."

Brandon sets down his pool stick and eyes Logan warily. He says, "Is this about how we had to huddle for warmth in my apartment that one time? Because I told you, it was really because the heat was acting up. The landlord fixed it though. I have serious love for you, Lerman, but you're not my type."

"I'm not actually going to ask you out."

"Ah, good," Brandon says, "because you know I'm saving myself for Jesse McCartney."

"Ugh, for real?" Logan says, picking up the pool cue. "You could do better."

"Did I ask you?" Brandon says and gestures toward the table. "Take your shot. And what's this about -- about that girl? That could have happened to anybody."

"But it happened to me," Logan says. He lines up his shot to hit the 3, but he barely bumps it, throwing off his entire angle. "And, I don't know. Maybe I heard her wrong, but I feel like I would've remembered it if she said she had a boyfriend. I think it's her boyfriend, this Nick dude. I think they used to date, so they have to be back at it again, right? That makes sense. I should just quit while I'm ahead."

Brandon says, "Nah, dude, don't give up. You don't even know for sure if they're dating. They could just be hanging out. You know what they say about wedding rings, man."

"Uh --"

"Does she have one?" Brandon says, rolling his eyes. Logan shakes his head, and Brandon shrugs, eyebrows raised like that answers everything. "Fair game."

That makes sense to Logan. He's pretty sure Selena's like sixteen though, so if she did have some kind of wedding ring, she'd be way ahead of, like, most of the teenagers in the world, let alone him.

"Alright," he says, building up his resolve. He's still in this game.

;;

He figures he has to go golfing with Selena and Nick. If he intends to prove that he's a better boyfriend choice than Nick Jonas, he probably can't turn down an invitation from the guy. Logan is a responsible and mature individual. He doesn't actually know that much about golf, but he can fake like he knows, because the real goal is to edge in and talk to Selena as much as possible while Nick sets up his own shots.

To start, Logan says, "Hey, sorry about the first time we hung out -- if it was at all, you know. I didn't realize at first that both of you guys were like, you know. Sometimes I'm kind of an awkward guy."

"Are you kidding?" Selena says. "You're great. I was excited that you called. I'm -- we're," and she motions in Nick's general direction, "we have a lot of respect for you. I love to hang out with other people my age, who are good at what they do."

"Well, thank you," Logan says. It's probably unfair that he wants to gag a little, especially since it's his own fault he didn't realize that Selena had a guy and, of _course_ he'd come along, because he's a beautiful, multi-million-dollar popstar dynamo, and there's no reason why they wouldn't want to do everything together. "You're awesome, too. I love your show."

"Thanks," Selena says, and she reaches out and pats his arm. "That's sweet."

Sweet isn't really worth enough in this situation, but Logan'll take it. He says, "So, uh. You guys come out here often?"

"Nick really likes it," Selena says. "I'm just learning from him, but he's the big sports guy. Plays everything."

"That's cool. Yeah, driving ranges and golf courses, like. Me and my friend Dean are just --"

"You golf a lot?"

"-- _nuts_ about it," Logan says.

That doesn't explain why he then proceeds to suck harder than a whole show team of Roombas at every shot he attempts for the next hour.

Behind him, Nick says, "You want some pointers?"

"No, I'm," Logan says, waving it off. The sun is behind them, so when Logan looks back at Nick and Selena, he has to squint. "Must be an off day. Weird winds or something."

"I was actually glad that it's so even out. There were a few really blustery days last week --"

"I'm more a baseball guy. Basketball or baseball," Logan says.

Nick says, "Really? Dude, you should come meet my brothers. We have these sports teams. You could probably play if you wanted."

"Oh, yeah!" Selena says, grinning. "Logan, it's a lot of fun -- the Road Dogs."

No, Logan thinks. No, no, fuck that, no. "Yeah! Yeah, sure. Just let me know."

;;

Logan hates Nick Jonas. How the hell do you compete with the most perfect seventeen-year-old in existence? When Nick isn't helping to save the world from diabetes, he's co-hosting with Kelly Ripa, visiting the White House like it's a vacation home, entertaining all the preteen girls in America and twenty-five percent of the girls around the rest of the world, and never complaining about the fact that he has an incurable disease himself.

Sometimes Logan used to fake headaches just so he could go to school an hour late and miss first period.

The worst part about Nick is that he doesn't even list his own accomplishments. There are a multitude of well-meaning people waiting in line to talk about how great Nick Jonas is every day of his life, starting with his brothers and running on down the line to co-stars and crew members.

Logan visits the Disney studios in Burbank and finds himself tossing a ball back and forth with Joe while Kevin and Nick shoot something on the soundstage, which is how Logan finds out so much about Nick's laundry list of good deeds and merits. It seems to run in the family, too, because at some point Joe mentions an event he's setting up in conjunction with the Special Olympics, and Logan sort of wants to vomit on his shoulder, but that might also just be because they've been standing out in the sun for a little while.

He asks, "Do you guys ever get time off?"

Laughing, Joe says, "No, not really, I guess. It's been laid back since the beginning of the year though, for the most part. Nick did a tour, but with filming at least we're in the same city more."

Nick did a tour. Logan isn't at all surprised. He says, "A tour? That doesn't sound more laid back."

It makes Joe laugh again, and he says, "We're busy bodies. He _really_ is. That's what happens when you're doing Broadway from, like, age seven."

Whatever, Logan was doing commercials when he was four. He has that thought, and then he feels like a loser for having it and completely fails to catch the next ball Joe lobs at him.

As he chases after it, Joe says, "You're about as bad as me," and sort of moves in so that they aren't as far apart when Logan grabs the ball and turns around. "At least we'll match each other if you play with us."

"Right?" Logan says, half-smirking, but it's not really the most comforting thing anyone's ever said to him.

;;

"It's like -- Superman. I'm Batman, completely badass and completely handsome and all that, but without x-ray vision and the ability to fly, who even cares about how many cool gadgets I have?" Logan says. He holds his hands out, fingers poised like he's framing the picture.

"Your gadgets aren't actually that cool," Dean says, considering the space between Logan's hands critically. "I mean, you've got the latest video game systems, though.That's pretty awesome."

"And I always find pirated versions before everybody else," Logan says.

"That's true," Dean says, holding up his Coke can in a salute. "Is Selena into Xbox?"

Logan pauses to think about it, then sighs and flops back on Dean's bed, stretching out. His bed isn't made; it's never made, and his room doesn't smell particularly fresh, but Logan doesn't mind, since his own room probably doesn't look or smell any better.

He should clean up when he gets home. Nick's room is probably clean. Nick probably has a mild case of OCD or something, just enough to make him charming and ensure that he's never unkempt ever. Fuck, Logan kind of wishes he were a germaphobe sometimes. He wouldn't mind picking up his dirty pants off the floor so much then.

"What's the scientific word for someone who's afraid of germs?" Logan asks, lifting his head.

"What does that have to do with the girl you want?" Dean finishes his soda, crumples the can, and then sets it on his desk. "Look, you said they used to date before and broke up. That happened for a reason. You just be better than however he messed up before. Find the chink in the armor."

"Maybe I'll bow out," Logan says. There have to be, like, at least fifty other cute Disney girls whose numbers he could get his mom to ask the agency to pass along. Out of necessity, obviously, not because he's lazy.

Dean shakes a finger, saying, "Okay, okay, then how about this: you remember Rebecca that I met at the audition for that Target commercial? Kind of tall. She has this friend who's really cute, I promise, and they want hang out with us. The other girl has this, like -- she was going on about how she doesn't shave her armpits or something, some personal statement, but I figured that wasn't really a deal-breaker --"

"You're right," Logan says, popping up suddenly and heading for the door. "I should get to know Nick. Superman's always got his Kryptonite."

"Wait," Dean says, frowning. "You're leaving?"

;;

Logan goes home and cleans his room, mops in the kitchen, sweeps the floors in the living room, and takes out the trash. When his dad comes home from work, he says, "What got into you today? You're not bringing a girl over here, are you? Is there someone hiding in your room right now?"

"What? No! Dad, no. I thought I'd help out," Logan says, looking around to take in the state of the house. He's kind of exhausted now. "I can see the carpet in my room now."

"Did you miss it?" his dad asks.

"Kind of," Logan says. "But it's funny how I didn't think about how much I missed it until it was back. It was a little exciting."

He's in the mood for a shower now that he's done, so Logan lets the warm water relax him for a while. Getting out, he moves back into this room, erases his white board and writes _Operation: Remove Nick Jonas_ , and then erases it because it makes him feel like a tool. He settles for putting on a t-shirt and jeans, and then gives Nick a call to ask if he wants to hang out, grab a meal or something.

Schedules have them push it back to a Thursday lunch, Logan riding all the way out to Malibu to eat at a sushi place Nick says he discovered a couple months ago.

"I've been craving it ever since," he says as they sit down to order. "And it's probably better for me than eating McDonald's again."

"Do you have to watch what you eat a lot?" Logan asks. He wonders if that's an appropriate question a second too late, but Nick doesn't seem offended that Logan's apparently just going to butt all up in his business.

Nick says, "I try to pick more healthy stuff as much as I can, but I still have a fast food addiction like most people. It's kind of bad."

Lazy, junk-food-eating slob, Logan thinks and stashes that away in his mental notes. To Nick, he says, "You probably balance it out with exercise and other things. Keep it under control."

"Absolutely. As much as I can," Nick says, glancing down at his menu. "So, you do like sushi, right? Maybe I should've asked that before we came."

Inattentive, self-concerned asshole, Logan thinks, and he tucks that one away for safe-keeping too. "Yeah, I like it. But I'm not especially well-versed in what's good or anything."

"Want me to pick some stuff? We can just try a bunch of it," Nick says. "Joe and Kevin love eating weird things and making me try it, so I've -- I guess I've tried a lot more stuff than I would have on my own."

"Sure," Logan says, scanning the selection with his eyes. "Order away."

;;

In a couple weeks, Logan manages to compile a list of Ten Things To Hate About Nick Jonas, but when he eats a box of Twinkies for breakfast, he has to cross off number one. It's impossible to hold someone else accountable for things that Logan does too, which means he spends a whole lot of time thinking he's onto something and then falling back to square one.

In the meantime, they eat out together semi-frequently, Logan gets better at hitting golf balls where they're intended to go, and he even gets tickets for him, Nick, and Selena to go to a Dodgers game through one of his father's friends and clients.

"I know you're a Yankees fan," Logan says, bumping his wrist against Nick's shoulder, "but I figured --"

"This is awesome. I'm gonna complain about this? I got to go to spring training a few weeks ago. Any game is fun to me," he says, actually smiling, and Logan starts to file that one away, too, but catches himself when he remembers he doesn't have a mental list for shit like that. He shakes off the momentary mishap and clears his throat in a deep, manly way.

"You're welcome, man," he says, and it's while they're cheering for the home team that Logan realizes the problem with surveying the enemy up close is getting too invested in the wrong objective. It doesn't help, though, that Nick is really and honestly nice for no reason at all. He turns to Logan and says that the game is great and thanks him about five times too many, and Logan almost tells him to stop doing that, because he's starting to feel like he fulfilled a dream for a Make-A-Wish kid or something. It seems like it would be tiring, being that genuine all the time.

Nick seems to do it without effort. For everything Logan puts on his list, Nick turns around and does something to make him take it off again, up to and including the point about him being kind of a flake, since one of the times Nick reschedules on him, it's so he and Selena can go to a museum together. He's probably one of the best boyfriends out there. It would make Logan sick if he wasn't so impressed by it.

"I thought you were into his girl," Brandon says when Logan tells him about the charm bracelet Nick picked out as a really early birthday present for Selena. He'd sent Logan a message to ask what he thought. "You're talking a lot about this dude for someone who's supposedly into his girlfriend."

"I'm sizing up the competition," Logan says. It's a great plan. He's on top of it. "I'm trying to tell you about my findings and observations. It's scientific research."

"And your scientific conclusion?"

"Is that this dude is like a saint," Logan says. "He's so great at everything, that I'm considering just changing my research to finding out what lab he was engineered in, so that I can have all my future children created there too."

"Isn't he sick or something though?" Brandon asks, screwing up his face in confusion.

Logan says, "It's for realism."

"You're insane." Brandon points at Logan and pins him with a stare. "Stop now. You're starting to freak me out."

"I'm not kidding! It's like _Gattaca_ come true --- ohhh, dude, let's get Taco Bell and watch that today."

;;

He then feels bad for making jokes when Selena shows up to see a movie with Logan alone the following week, because, "Nick isn't feeling well. He told me to tell you he'd catch up with us next time."

"Is he okay?" Logan asks.

Selena says, "He'll be alright. He's just gonna take a couple days to regroup." She hooks her arm through his. "For today, it's just us. You're not afraid of scary movies, are you?"

"Me? Afraid? Please," Logan says, because, okay, he may have been freaked out by Jason when he was a kid, but that was a long time ago. He's built up a serious tolerance now. He only grabs on to Selena's wrist twice during the film, and he jumps once. He's a sucker for a good moment of suspense, though, and he looks away from the screen only once, but it has everything do with texting Nick to see if he's alright and not, like, the amount of mutilation happening on the screen. He loves violence and guts.

In his text, he writes, _you pansy; you're just scared of gore, aren't you? feel better._

Nick texts him back, just a smile and a thank you. Logan looks to Selena and says, "Does soup do anything to help in a situation like this?"

"What?" Selena asks, then chuckles under her breath and pats his hand. "Logan, movie now; soup later. You can relax."

Logan just feels like such an inadvertent douchewad. He thinks about what to do through the rest of the flick, grabbing something to eat with Selena afterwards, and before they part ways for the day, she kisses his cheek and says, "You're still such a sweet guy."

"My mom's my manager," Logan says. "I practice by trying to impress her every day."

"Then thanks to your mom," she says, laughing softly. She squeezes Logan's arm affectionately, and he promises they'll hang out again soon. "Just call me."

"Definitely," he says, and she lingers for a moment, before Logan hitches up his shoulders and points in a different direction.

He says, "Uh. Alright. I'm going this way."

When he gets back to his car, he heads east, a little out of his way and stops at his favorite soup place to pick up classic chicken noodle. He stops at a bakery and picks up some cupcakes too, then grabs a juice from 7-11, and the ride from Hollywood to Toluca Lake is pretty quick from there.

He remembers that Nick might be sleeping or something as he's ringing the doorbell. His truck is outside, but Logan doesn't see any other cars. He's going to feel real stupid if he came all this way and no one even answers the door. Luckily, Nick appears after a few minutes, groggy and confused.

"Did you -- are you by yourself?" Nick asks.

Logan holds out the small meal he's assembled and shoves it at Nick. "I didn't know if salt or sugar was good, or what, so. And, sorry, I didn't think that I might come over and interrupt your parents' day or something. My brain is all over the place."

"Don't worry about it," Nick says. "My parents aren't here. It's just me and my little brother." He pushes open one of the bags and says, "You didn't have to, uh -- is this soup?"

"Chicken," Logan says. He's a loser. "I didn't know if you had a cold or if it was something else."

"No, no, this is really nice," Nick says. He looks at the cupcakes and the juice, nodding approvingly. "This is great. You didn't have to, man."

"I felt bad," Logan says, thrown off as he catches on to the way Nick's moving forward, with an arm open. "Oh, hey, here we go."

He lets himself be hugged, unsure of what to do with his hands. Nick secures a grip around Logan's shoulder, so Logan touches his back, fingers splayed out alongside Nick's spine, and when he relaxes, Nick hugs him tighter. Logan exhales, and as he breathes in again, he catches the clean, fruit smell of Nick's hair, something like strawberries. Even that is somehow fitting: muscle musician guy Nick who can carry the world on his back, but still smell soft and sweet like summer fruits, powerful and non-threatening. Logan has the non-threatening part down, at least.

Nick's cheeks are kind of rosy when he pulls back, and Logan says, "Did I wake you up?"

Glancing over his shoulder, Nick says, "Not really. I've been sort of up and down since last night. One of my older brothers was here, too, this morning, but I think he left because I kept falling asleep on him." Nick sort of laughs and shrugs. "I mean, you're welcome to hang around, if you don't mind that."

Logan makes a random shushing noise that doesn't actually count as an answer. He regroups and tries again, saying, "I mean. Yeah." It's not like he has anything else to do today.

"Alright," Nick says, making room for Logan to come into the house, and that's how Logan ends up killing most of his evening, watching cable television with Nick and his younger brother.

Frankie tells him about his plan to sell candy on tour in the summertime, because he's noticed that people just come ready to buy everything at the shows, and the counters in the venues never have good sweets. The kid sounds way more entrepreneurial than Logan knows how to deal with all at once. When Logan was his age, all he wanted was to go to audition after audition, and he didn't even actually care if he made money as long as he got to be on film. Nick just laughs lightly and says that's how Frankie's always been, about ten times smarter than the rest of them put together, and then he falls asleep in the middle of _School of Rock_ after Frankie disappears to play video games.

Logan watches the movie anyway, slouched into the couch and only startled when Nick's legs turns out in his sleep, bumping their knees together. Logan jostles him a bit, but Nick doesn't wake up, so he leaves it until the performance towards the end of the movie startles Nick awake.

"Sleep well?"

"Ugh," Nick says. "Was I snoring?"

"I didn't mind," Logan says, and he looks back at the screen, tapping out the rhythm of the song on his thighs. "Man, I haven't practiced drums in so long, because of Percy."

"You play?" Nick asks, rubbing his eyes. "You didn't tell me that."

"Yeah, I mean." Logan angles his head to the side to see Nick's eyes. "I've never recorded seriously or anything, but I wanted to learn to play as a kid. I have a little band."

Nick says, "We should play," holding out his knuckles and bumping Logan's thigh. "Soon, dude."

"Sure," Logan says, and then can't think of anything else to add, so he's just staring at Nick until it gets weird, and then makes him turn back to Jack Black's antics. "This movie is dumb as hell, but I love it."

;;

By soon, it turns out, Nick means three days later. While training and filming for Percy Jackson ate up a lot the previous year for him, now that press is mostly done, he has a lot more free time, so Logan tells Nick to come on over.

They mess around on guitar and drums for a couple hours, then switch off, and Nick plays Logan's drums like he hadn't just been fatigued at home a few days before. Until Nick came over, Logan hadn't even bothered to shower for two days, and this guy came in talking about all the errands he'd run that morning, then wailed through a bunch of improvised instrumentals without breaking too much of a sweat.

"Okay, okay," Logan says. "Time out. I need a snack break."

Wandering down to the kitchen, Logan pulls out the bread, organic peanut butter, and the special jam his dad loves so much. He starts to make sandwiches, and looks to Nick, asking, "This cool?"

"Sure," Nick says.

"Want something to drink?" he asks, but then goes into the fridge and pulls out another Diet Coke for Nick anyway.

Nick says, "Thanks."

"Welcome."

He gets a glass of water for himself and goes back to preparing their food. Logan watches Nick lean against the counter, glancing around the kitchen idly, and Logan says, "Dude, you have to slow down up there. You make me feel bad."

"What do you mean?" Nick asks, dragging his soda can back and forth across the countertop.

Logan says, "You're just like this powerhouse. I don't even get where you have all this energy from, because you were kind of pale the other day."

"I was under the weather, but I got over it," Nick says. "It's really not that serious."

"Not even just this week. Like, you and your brothers went to Texas, flew back, filmed a lot, did something else charitable, on and on," Logan says, spreading more peanut butter with each new item. "Meanwhile, I debated with myself about whether to have a Klondike Bar for breakfast or to do ten push-ups first to feel like I earned it. Your schedule is crazy."

A smile breaks across Nick's mouth slowly, and then he laughs. He even tosses his head back a little, and Logan doesn't think it's that funny, really, because he only got up to five push-ups, and then decided he'd worked hard enough.

Nick says, "You're an actor. It's just different schedules."

"Like you're not an actor," Logan says, because Nick _is_ filming a television show.

"No, the acting you do is way bigger than our little show that we never have to leave Los Angeles for," Nick says, and Logan shrugs.

"I used to do TV, man. Sometimes that's grueling."

"I used to _watch_ you on TV," Nick says, perking up for a second. "Have I ever told you about that?"

"The show on the WB."

"Yeah!" Nick says. He stops and shakes his head, looking up as he recalls it. "We used to watch together. My whole family, and I have this -- right, so, there's this running joke, kind of, where I talked about running for President one day in 2040 or 2038, whichever one it is. I think your character runs in 2040 somehow."

"I don't even remember," Logan says. He never really had to deal with that part of the show. The future stuff was all testimony.

Nick says, "Anyway, I'm like the same age as him or was -- the same age as you, kind of, so it became this thing in my house. Bobby was a cool character. Everybody said I was like him: an individual and stuff."

"I can't believe that's why they call you the President," Logan says, thinking about the times he's heard Joe or Kevin say it. "Oh, shit." He looks at Nick, eyes widening. "Oh, _shit_ , you have a TV crush on Bobby McCallister."

"That's not at all what I said."

"You do, though! You're like -- man," Logan says, clapping his hands together. This is too good. "Dude, I didn't think. Dude. It's too bad I'm not anything like that guy."

Nick says, "You have the same face."

"Yeah, but I never started a space club in my school," Logan says. He's not at all cut out to be a President. He wants to be a director for a reason. He loves movies, loves sitting around on his ass and coming up with ridiculous ideas for him and Dean to try to write for feature one day. Not that that's not completely commendable, because it is. That's Logan's _career_ in the making right there.

"How weird that you have a dude-crush on Bobby McCallister," Logan says, tickled. "On me, then. Because I'm Bobby."

"I really don't," Nick says, taking the sandwich Logan passes to him. He's cut the crusts off and everything, even though his mom always tries to tell him that's where all the nutrients are. He doesn't care. He'll just take a multivitamin.

"Don't deny it now," Logan says. "That's like -- I'm putting that on my IMDB page somewhere. Fun facts about Logan. Number one, Nick Jonas would hit it."

;;

His mom thinks it's kind of funny. She laughs outright when he tells her about it as he's getting ready for a new agency meeting a couple mornings later.

She says, "That's kind of a charming coincidence." She extends her arm and touches Logan's hair. "Look at you, inspiring people."

" _Mom_ ," he says. This is not a time to get mushy. He still has to pick out a shirt and brush his teeth.

"Okay, okay," she says, stepping back. She seems to notice the fact that he's still only half-dressed too, motioning toward his white t-shirt. "What's this? We have to leave in twenty minutes."

"I'm working on it," he says. He's got his pants on already. He's most of the way there, and a text message takes care of the rest as Logan takes out his phone and sends Nick a quick question: _exec meeting. white w/ gray stripes? or pullover sweater?_

Lisa says, "What are you doing? Stop playing with your cell so we can get out of here."

"Mom. I got this," Logan says, feeling his phone vibrate and reading Nick's reply: _stripes are business but fun_. He moves to kiss his mom's cheek before heading toward the door. "Ten minutes, and I'll be ready to jet."

He feels really confident in the meeting, and it goes really well. His agents don't know what's happening with _Spider-man_ still, but no news continues to count as good news too. His agent compliments his shirt, says it's nice that Logan decided to put on a real outfit for them, half-joking, but Logan stills sends a message to Nick after the meeting to thank him for his infinite style wisdom.

 _i know how to make an impression_ , Nick writes, and Logan would assume the winking emoticon was heavily implied if he was talking to anyone but Nick.

 _important in a presidential candidate_ , Logan sends back. He still finds it hilarious that Nick is some real-life incarnation of lines Logan memorized.

He tells everybody about it, because it's a fucking funny story. His dad, his friends -- he tells Dean about three times, and it doesn't get old. Logan was trying to best Nick Jonas, and the whole time, Nick was doing his best impression of Logan. He's more awesome than he first thought, which he repeats to Dean when he meets him at a Jamba Juice one afternoon for one of their writers brainstorming sessions where they talk about movies for an hour and then draw caricatures of each other on napkins.

"It's not really that interesting a story anymore," Dean says, because he's the worst best friend anyone could ever have. He pays for Logan's drink, though, so Logan figures he can stay around a little longer.

He says, "Man, don't you get it? I'm trying to figure out this dude's deal, and I'm the answer. Kind of. The TV show we did is the answer."

"Bobby had a lot of character," Dean concedes.

" _I_ have a lot of character," Logan says.

"You're not Bobby," Dean says.

"You're jealous because Warren was a dork, and that makes you one too."

"Hey, I got you this," Dean says, and when Logan looks at him again, Dean flips him off. Logan laughs, pushing his hand away. "Dude, you just talk about this guy all the time. So what if he has a hard-on for you? Does this mean you know how to get in with that girl now or what?"

"Selena?" Logan asks. Well. They already do spend time together at this point. Although he hasn't talked to her in a few days. He should text her soon.

"Yeah, the whole point of this."

"We hang out."

"But do you make out yet? I would've closed this deal by now."

"No, you wouldn't have. Quit talking like you're some kind of Don Juan, _Warren_ ," Logan says, smiling wide.

Dean says, "Oh, hey, I got you something else," and Logan's laughing again before Dean even raises his hand.

;;

He arranges a day at the beach with Nick and Selena, eventually, for a weekend they all have off. Nick's busy with wrapping up the second season of his show and preparing their world tour, Selena's still performing more and more shows with her band, and Logan is really busy with organizing his house on The Sims lately. It's hard work, and he feels like beaching it is necessary, but Selena has to bail out at the last minute.

"You and me then, Jonas," Logan says when Nick shows up with the news.

"A whole afternoon of making you look bad in the water," Nick says, looking more excited about it than Logan sees him get about most things.

"It's really creepy how you get off on being better than me at things," Logan says.

Nick's jaw drops a little, indignant. "No, I don't."

Logan laughs and grabs his surfboard, running off and shouting, "Last one buys dinner!"

He makes it to the water first, but then Nick really does proceed to embarrass Logan when it comes to surfing. They're both kind of bad at it, but at least Nick pretends pretty well. Logan gets really good at falling, and then just takes to sabotaging Nick as much as possible for fun.

He's exhausted and _starving_ after a few hours, washing up on the shore and complaining about how he aches all over and feels like he hasn't eaten in a decade.

"Yeah, yeah," Nick says, but he holds out his hand for Logan and helps him out. "I'll feed you."

"I do love a man that takes control," Logan says, draping an arm around Nick's shoulders.

Nick says, "What do you want?"

"You're buying. You pick," Logan says. Nick always picks good restaurants anyway.

They eat dinner, and Logan ends up going out to Burbank for lunch a few times in the following week. He sees Nick a lot, plays ball with him and his brothers, and finds himself around the Jonas family so often that Kevin says he's afraid they're training his replacement.

"I really couldn't replace you if I wanted to," Logan says, because if Nick is so courteous it's sickening sometimes, Kevin is three times worse. He might literally be the nicest person on the entire planet. Logan would probably bet money it.

"No, we're just grooming him so we can adopt him," Joe says. "Don't worry, Kev. We talked about it, and we're going to let you stay around."

"Well, thanks, Joe. That's comforting."

"We're a kind people," Joe says, touching his hand to his heart, and Logan laughs.

They're a goofy bunch of guys, especially when they all get together, but Logan's in touch with that most days. They're good company. He goes out with them a few times, but more often it's just Logan and Nick wasting time. He and Nick even write a song together, something upbeat and fun, and Logan keeps defaulting to Nick for how to best impress his agents with his wardrobe. Nick is still too good at everything for someone their age, but Logan doesn't hate him anymore. He even thinks Nick's kind of alright.

;;

It's Logan's dad who brings something important to Logan's attention when he comes in from work and says, "Did you break up with your girlfriend? She's not coming over anymore, so you don't clean up anymore?"

"What?" Logan asks.

"You've been wearing the same shirt for three days."

"It's not because I'm depressed, Dad," Logan says, looking down at his shirt and then raising his arm to sniff himself. Whatever, he doesn't even really smell bad.

Larry says, "You're perfectly happy?"

He feels great, yes. Logan shrugs and says, "Yeah, I'm awesome."

"Then wash some dishes," Larry says. "Spread the joy in the kitchen's direction. Get your brother and sister to help."

"Seriously?" Logan says. That's not fair. He didn't even mess up most of those dishes.

He announces this loudly, even as he heads into the other room and unloads the clean dishes to load dirty plates into the dishwasher. It's while he's looking at a plate and trying to figure out if it's got ketchup dried on it or something worse that he thinks about his dad asking about a girl, trying to remember if his dad ever even met Selena, that he realizes it's been a while since he's heard from her.

He stops to send her a message, typing, _yooooo. long time, no coffee and danish._

The dishwasher is almost full by the time she texts back, _who eats danishes anymore?_

He writes: _danish people? where you been?_

 _work work work_ , Selena shoots back, and Logan completely understands that. That is, he could if he was working right now, so actually he can't relate at all.

 _let's hang out. you, nick & me_, he sends, and he finishes cleaning up the kitchen. She's only sent back a smiley face when Logan checks it again, which he figures is a yes, so he starts thinking about another beach day and falls asleep imagining himself owning the ocean like he's half fish.

;;

They don't ever actually make it out to the beach, though. Two weeks go by, and Logan hangs out with Nick, but Selena's sort of Missing In Action.

They're standing in line for concession before they start and independent movie marathon. Logan likes to go to those as much as possible, keep tabs on the smaller pictures and possible upcoming directors, and Nick likes not being harassed by the paparazzi, so sitting in dark theaters is right up his alley. Logan orders a large popcorn, two large fountain drinks, a box of Whoppers, and then he almost gets a package of Red Vine, but he stops, because Selena is the one who likes to drink her soda through those.

"Dude, I feel like I haven't seen Selena in years," Logan says, when the clerk walks off to collect their snacks.

Nick says, "Oh, yeah," and takes a breath. "Me neither."

"How is she busier than you? You have about twelve projects going on at once."

"She's got the album, too. She has a lot on her plate," Nick says, fiddling the headband he's got on his hair.

Logan says, "I was trying to think of when we could hang out again. We should go to Six Flags. Call her."

"We're actually," Nick starts and tilts his head to the side, stretching his neck. "We haven't been spending a lot of time together, for a little while."

"Wait." Logan scratches his fingers over the glass casing with all the display candy. "Did you break up?"

Nick makes a noncommittal noise, and then says, "We were just trying something out. It's not like --"

"You broke up!" Logan says, interrupting him. "You didn't even tell me!"

"We've both got busy summers coming up," Nick says, like he's rehashing part of the conversation he never even told Logan they had right there, live and in-person. "We have the Jonas Brothers world tour. She's got stuff with her own music and a new movie."

Logan says, "You're supposed to tell your good friends when you're hurting."

"It's not really that dire a situation."

"I'm really great at commiserating. My friend Dean -- have you met him yet? You should meet him -- he has this whole thing about burning pictures of his exes as a cleanse."

Screwing up his mouth, Nick makes a wary sort of noise. He says, "I don't really know."

"No, the burning crap is just dramatic, but I get to make the mix CDs. I'm really good at that part," Logan says, paying for their junk and handing Nick his soda and the Whoppers. "You can have your own volume of Songs To Be A Dumped Bastard To."

Nick's chuckle seems accidental. He says, "What's the tone of something like that?"

"A little of everything," Logan says, nodding seriously. "It'll take you smoothly through the five stages of grief, leave you with a little optimism."

"Do you make mix CDs or self-help audiobooks?"

"Jonas has jokes, wow," Logan says, elbowing Nick lightly as they walk toward the theater and settle in. Once they're in their seats, Logan holds the popcorn out for Nick to grab some. "You never know, it could inspire you to write a song."

Nick says, "Other people's songs could inspire me to write songs."

"No, _my_ mix cd could inspire you," Logan clarifies. "I've been told I'm an inspiring person. I made this one kid want to be president one day --"

"Yeah, yeah," Nick says, talking over Logan, and Logan just talks louder until a couple a few rows ahead tells them to shut it. Nick, of course, apologizes.

;;

"You're giving him one of my mixes?" Dean asks.

Logan rolls his eyes. "I'm going to make him a new one. He can have one of his own."

"I think you're wrong about how great this Jonas brother guy is. He seems like a homewrecker to me," Dean says, lying on Logan's bed and looking at him from upside down. "You used to love me."

"I thought I told you to stop watching soap operas when you're home during the daytime," Logan says, scrolling through his iPod to figure out what to start with for Nick's disc.

Dean says, "They suck you in, dude," and topples off the bed, sitting on the floor with Logan. "Speaking of homewrecking, did they break up over you? Have you and Selena -- you know? That's going to suck when he finds out."

"He's my friend," Logan says. "Dean, man. I'm not an asshole."

"You were going to be," Dean says.

"Well." Logan shrugs and thinks, yes, The Cure. There has to be some Robert Smith. "I'm not."

;;

It was different when Logan didn't really know anything about Nick other than his accomplishments and his personal agenda to save the world. Nick isn't necessarily more laid back than his resume implies, but he's still approachable. He's still actually a teenager who sometimes likes to see How To Train Your Dragon in 3D twice, the second time without even having the buffer of his younger brother there to make it seem like a favor.

That had been kind of a great afternoon, because then they spent an hour at Yogurtland, trying to think of all the combinations they could put together for maximum satisfaction. Logan had suffered a lot of brain freeze that day, but it had still been a good time.

Nick makes him go _hiking_ , of all things, which strikes Logan as the exact opposite kind of behavior appropriate for break-up moping. He really would rather walk around in an undershirt at home and snap into a Slim Jim. He bought an economy-sized tin from Costco last week.

"That sounds disgusting," Nick says as Logan tells him about it.

"No!" Logan says. "No, not disgusting. Glorious. Also, dude, I made you a CD, and there's no boombox out here."

"We'll chill out after."

Logan feels like he's going to die from all the exercise Nick makes him get, but it's kind of cool when they get to the top. Nick pulls out burritos and bottles of water from his satchel, and they eat on a mountaintop in the middle of the day.

"What is this, your thinking space?" Logan asks.

Nick hums for a second, then says, "I don't know yet. I've never actually been up here."

"It's a good spot," Logan says. They should have brought a guitar or something. "I vote yes on it, though it's way too much effort to get to the top."

"We walked for maybe half an hour."

"I was born here, dude. I don't know how to walk for longer than five minutes without seeing my life start to flash before my eyes." Logan shakes his hands in front of his face to demonstrate. "And we walked for twenty-five whole extra minutes? My life is surprisingly short. I've watched a lot of cartoons during it, I realize."

Nick laughs, tossing the wrapper for his burrito at Logan's head. He says, "Shut up. Where's my cathartic experience? I thought you were a motivational speaker or something."

"Oh, right," Logan says, swallowing a mouthful of tortilla and rice and beans. "You're a majestic snowflake. Your curls spring eternal."

"What?" Nick asks, doubling over. Logan can't help but crack a smirk too.

He says, "They're power statements! Dude, I don't know. It's not the same without a soundtrack."

"That was terrible," Nick says, shaking his head in disbelief.

"It's the thought that counts. Come on, we need music."

They do eventually head back to civilization. Nick even lets Logan drive his big, stupid truck, which Logan would laugh at him for more often if it wasn't also the coolest ride Logan's ever had. He feels like a beast in Nick's Super Duty, capable of mowing down old ladies and bears alike, and then swooping into gas stations to load up on diesel fuel like some tall, intimidating, badass, grown man.

"Yesss," Logan says when Nick tosses him the keys. Getting behind the wheel, he curls his hands around the steering wheel and squeezes. "Don't you love the get-up in this thing?"

"It's a nice car," Nick says, closing his eyes as he leans back in the passenger seat. "Gets me where I need to go."

Logan's tempted to shout " _What is the point of you?_ " because only Nick would buy a dudebro car, and then not want to have college frat boy conversations about it. Logan just starts the engine and heads to his house.

Nick hangs around for the afternoon. Logan's cleaned his room, but the rest of the house is still kind of a mess, and Nick one-ups him as a son by doing the dishes while Logan straightens up the living room. He puts his mix CD in the stereo and plays it loudly, singing along with all the tracks. He keeps getting distracted from his tasks because of it, shuffling into the kitchen and picking up a ladle to use as a microphone.

"Is this Cat Stevens?" Nick asks.

"Better statement: thank God, it's Cat Stevens," Logan says, and then drops the ladle into the sink. He tugs at the wash cloth in Nick's hand, and says, "Dude, stop helping. You're my guest."

"I'm useful."

"You're annoying, and you're making me look bad," Logan says, clenching his fingers together when Nick tries to take the cloth away. "No way. Go kick your feet up and have some jerky."

"I refuse," Nick says, but he seems amused.

"Forget it, then. I didn't want you to have any of my snacks anyway." He nudges Nick's shoulder, sort of stumbling them back. Logan's side grazes the counter, and he looks down at Nick. He touches Nick's arm to regain his balance, catching his eyes, and then edging back. "I'll finish this."

He does finally get Nick to just hang out with some added insistence, and Logan finishes cleaning up just in time for the pizzas his mom brings home. He grabs one box for him and Nick, and after Nick thanks her too many times, Logan drags him away to watch TV in his room and play video games. They get caught trying to beat _Halo 2_ from the beginning randomly, and when Nick yawns around midnight, Logan says, "Hey, you can crash here, you know. Did you talk to your parents? Stick around."

"I should get home," Nick says, holding the back of his hand up to his mouth as he yawns again.

"It's up to you," Logan says, and Nick makes more noises about leaving, then dozes off while Logan's in the middle of killing a bunch of aliens.

He doesn't even really notice until he's ready to turn the game off. As he switches the television back to cable, he hears Nick mumbling things. "What was that?" Logan asks, looking around, but Nick's talking in his sleep like a creepy weirdo, and Logan touches his calf and shakes him some. "Hey. Nicholas, stop that."

"Hm," Nick says, opening his eyes with a start. "What time is it?"

"Get in the bed, man. It's huge. Your back will like you more," Logan says.

Nick gets up and mumbles, "I gotta get back home."

"Sleep," Logan insists, pushing at Nick's knees and making him collapse on the bed. "Take your shoes off and crash."

Nick does so after a moment of pause, getting his bearings. He toes off his shoes and then falls to the side, taking off his watch, dogtags, and ring and setting them on Logan's nightstand. He's out again less than a couple minutes later, and Logan laughs about it to himself. He's tempted to take a picture so he can Photoshop drool in later or something, just in case that kind of thing comes in handy, but the light isn't bright enough, and he quickly realizes how stupid he must look trying to take a picture of Nick with his camera phone.

He gets ready for bed too, instead, turning out the light and climbing over Nick to get into the other spot.

"I should have made _you_ sleep by the wall," he says, purposely kicking Nick, but Nick hardly even stirs.

;;

Logan isn't used to sleeping with other people in his bed very often, let alone getting smacked in the face early in the morning. It doesn't help that reflexes have him throw his own arm out, but the wrong way, and so Logan knocks his knuckles hard against the wall, jarring him awake more.

" _Fuck_ ," Logan hisses. "What the fuck."

"Shh," Nick mumbles. "Language."

" _Ow_ ," Logan says, opening his eyes to try to glare at Nick. "Are you trying to beat me up in my sleep?"

Nick's eyes pop open, and he pushes up on his elbows. "Wait," he says. "Where am I?"

"My house, dude," Logan says, shaking out his hand, and then rubbing his face. "I treat you right, and you take advantage of me in my home."

"Oh, no," Nick says, dropping his face into the pillow. "No, I didn't call my parents. They're gonna kill me."

"I can't even picture them getting mad at you," Logan says, yawning. "Chill out."

"I gotta go," Nick says, rolling over some, and Logan grabs his arm.

"Dude, the sun is barely out. It can wait," Logan says. Shifting around more, Nick mumbles something else about getting his shoes. Logan grabs onto his again, tugging at the back of Nick's shirt. "Quit. Seriously."

His fingers bump against Nick's back, and when Nick rolls back, Logan's hand gets trapped underneath him. He pulls away, moving to Nick's side instead, and then around to Nick's stomach as Nick faces him again.

"You can't let me sleep past seven," Nick says. "Really."

"Alright," Logan says, and he wonders if moving his hand will make it weird, because he didn't intend for his fingers to stop that low. Nick hasn't noticed yet, but the second Logan moves at all, he does, eyes darting down, and Logan feels like he's been caught in the middle of something.

"Okay," Nick says tentatively. His stomach goes a little concave, like he's trying to figure out what to do about this too.

Logan finally says, "Cool," and just does it one fell swoop, lifting his arm to pat Nick's shoulder. "Now, no talking in your sleep this time."

"Was I doing that?" Nick asks. "Sorry."

"It was cute," Logan says, intending for playful, but it just comes out soft and sleepy this early, troublingly genuine. "And weird. Crazy weird."

But the addendum doesn't make it better, and Logan wonders why he hasn't just gone to sleep to spare himself any more damage. Nick blinks, silent but unmoving. His eyes are equally heavy, still tired, caught up in the quiet of a morning and sleepy house. Logan brings his hand higher, because it's the kind of thing that seems appropriate in this setting, touching Nick's head, and then his face, and Logan thinks about pinching his cheek as payback, but he tilts his chin up and kisses Nick instead.

Nick isn't coaxed into it so much as it takes him a moment to catch on, it feels like, and then his own fingers are hovering around Logan's jaw, fluttering down by his shoulder. Logan lifts his head some to make it all fit better, and Nick finally tangles his hand in Logan's shirt, holding on tightly.

Logan kisses him until Nick's grip loosens, like a cue for breath, and then the ceiling becomes really interesting. Nick hides his face in his pillow, and Logan closes his eyes to keep from doing anything else reckless, even though Nick's fingers are still right there against his ribs.

He moves his own hand up, touching Nick's. There's a small battle, fingers tripping over fingers. Despite his most noble efforts, Logan opens his eyes again and sees Nick looking at him. His breaths are quiet even though Logan's still close enough to rock into him without moving too much, lips grazing Nick's cheekbone, conspiring against the morning with affection and letting the weight of it settle their limbs and send them drifting off again.

;;

When Logan wakes up a few hours later, Nick's shoes, jewelry, and everything are gone. The clock tells him it's after nine in the morning, but it still, surprisingly, kind of sucks. Logan makes a mental note about Nick Jonas being a deserter, and then scraps the whole list, because it doesn't actually make him feel any better.

He goes downstairs and drinks milk from the carton until Lucas comes down and says, "What the hell? Get a cup."

Logan pours himself a bowl of cereal, eats half, and then dumps the rest to go shower and brush his teeth. He's distracted the whole time, so much so that he gets caught up staring at his bed when he gets out. He gnaws on his lip as he thinks about Nick lying there, the weight of his body on Logan's hand, wondering if he's supposed to call him or not.

His phone rings, shocking him out of his daze, and Logan sees Dean's name on the screen as he answers. "Hey."

"It's supposed to only be in the seventies today. Ride?" Dean asks.

"Yeah, give me a minute. I'll meet you," Logan says, hanging up. He puts on clothes, makes sure he has his cell and house keys, then grabs his bike from the garage and rides down to Dean's house.

On nice days, they like to ride out of Beverly Hills and capture a bunch of random footage around Los Angeles to create montages and practice more editing effects on Logan's desktop. Their last video was called "Hobos in Space," and really just featured this guy they saw dancing on Beverly near Miracle Mile blended with a bunch of footage from _Armageddon_.

Today Dean keeps trying to get shots of kids as they run around or are out shopping with their parents, riding closer and closer the hills leading to the beach, and Logan zones out as he films some girl skipping around a car as her mother packs the groceries into the trunk, wondering how close they are to the sushi place Nick introduced to him.

"Alright, creepy," Dean says, jabbing Logan hard in the arm. "Don't get carried away. There's a fine line between this and pedophile."

Coming out of his daze -- another ridiculous moment where he thinks about something to do with Nick Jonas, Logan says, "You would know," with less bite than he likes, and then moves to pick up his bike. "Hey, let's eat somewhere."

"That's the best idea you've had all day," Dean says.

They stop at a burger spot instead of going out of their way to find anything special. Logan thinks it's probably a smarter call than fish anyway, and he picks at the chips they put on the table between him and Dean, checking his phone every couple minutes.

"You're antsy today, dude," Dean says. "Waiting for somebody. Ooh, did you talk to Selena?"

"I think I made out with Nick this morning?" Logan says, voice definitely pitching up at the end like a question. He winces. "I mean."

"Wait," Dean says, furrowing his brow. "You did what? You didn't just say Nick."

"It was early!" Logan says. He leans in more, glancing around at a couple of the other booths. "He spent the night at my house."

"I _told_ you. Homewrecker!" Dean says, leaning in too.

Logan says, "What does that even mean?"

"He's not replacing me," Dean says. "I'm your best friend first."

"Could you make this less about you? We're not dating," Logan says, wondering why he ever picked a friend that's such a drama fiend.

Dean says, "But you said never again! And now this guy."

"Okay, that was different, number one. Two, quit whisper yelling at me," Logan says, shaking his head. Dean still sort of has some weird delusions about him and Logan being hetero-life partners with a soul bond, because they jerked off to the same internet porn at the same time once. And while it was sufficiently bizarre for a day after, they kept hanging out anyway, but Logan doesn't think that means they're bonded over anything other than maybe being a little bit queer sometimes, with your best bro, as long as you're watching a straight couple get down in thirty second free site clips at fourteen. "Can we discuss the fact I kissed the wrong half of that couple?"

"Did you want to?" Dean asks, and then rears his head back and gasps. "Do you want to do it again?"

"He won't call me," Logan says and slaps his hands against his face, over his eyes. "Why do I give a shit?"

"That's really gay," Dean says, nodding, expression thoughtful. "Actual gay."

"Thanks," Logan says, burying his head in his arms.

Popping more chips into his mouth, Dean says, "You should have told me if you wanted to experiment."

"Please stop talking."

"I'm saying," Dean says. "I would've supported you. I like the ladies. I've got a little reputation by now, but still. I would've helped you out."

"I appreciate that, but shut up."

"Just letting you know I'm here," Dean says, crunching away loudly still. He taps Logan's arm and waits for Logan to peek. "Hey, so does this mean Selena's still on the market?"

;;

Leave it to him to start out with one goal and completely turn it on its head. Logan can't even trace how things got shifted out of whack. He definitely keeps willing his phone to signal a new message from Nick or something, so he should probably just accept that his whole initial plan for everything involving a couple of Disney stars is fucked. The saying might be 'keep friends close and enemies closer,' but Logan sort of doubts that was supposed to mean to keep your enemy so close they become a friend he makes out with at five in the morning. He's pretty certain that part he made up.

Instead of going home with Dean, Logan keeps on riding back to his house. As he's putting his bike away, he pulls out his phone for the millionth time and thinks, fuck it. He'll just do it. He can be an adult about this and make the call himself.

He isn't surprised when he gets Nick's voicemail, but he does realize he hasn't actually planned what he wants to say. He tries, "Uh," and swallows. "Hey. It's me. I wanted to make sure that you, uh. Made it home okay, I guess. You could've woken me up this morning. I know I probably had morning breath or something, but you didn't have to run out, or." He chuckles lamely and feels lame and wants to hang up. "Anyway, yeah. I just wanted to, you know. Yeah. I'll talk to you later hopefully."

Ending the call, Logan stares down at his phone and says, "What the fuck was that? That was awful."

He's officially the most pathetic person he knows. It's kind of disgusting, truth be told, so he goes in the house and eats an entire bag of Cheetos Puffs to try to feel like himself again.

His phone rings an hour later. Logan drops it on the carpet when he first sees Nick's name, and then scrambles across the floor to grab it and answer. "Hello? Hello, hi, hey."

"Are you okay?" Nick asks.

Logan takes a breath and tries not to be complete loser. It's kind of rough. He says, "Yeah, I just -- whatever, yeah. What's up?"

"We should probably talk," Nick says, even and direct.

"Right," Logan says, agreeing. "Now, or do you want me to meet you somewhere?"

"We were filming on location today. I'm kind of beat, but we could get breakfast or something, tomorrow."

"Sure. For sure," Logan says, turning around his room a few times as if that requires him to actually do anything at all right now. He's so disoriented. "Um. Should I come your way?"

"I can pick you up at like nine, if that's cool."

"Yeah," Logan says. "Let's do it. I mean, let's, uh, eat tomorrow."

"Okay. Cool. I'll see you in the morning then."

"Yeah! Definitely. I'll, uh. I'll be here," Logan says, and they don't draw out the goodbyes too much longer. He hangs and presses his mouth against the edge of his phone, letting it all sink in. They have to _talk_. "Oh, fuck me."

;;

In the morning, Logan wakes up at seven without being cued by an alarm clock for the first time in his life. He can't get back to sleep either, so he hops in the shower, and then stands around the kitchen, tempted to eat something and reminding himself it's a bad idea. Nick will show up in a little over an hour, and then they'll have breakfast and talk about the day before, and Logan realizes that the rumbling he feels isn't hunger but unwanted nerves.

He watches broadcast cable cartoons he's never heard of for an hour, then ends up sitting on the porch and listening to his iPod while he waits. Nick pulls up in his big, black truck ten minutes before nine, and Logan pushes his headphones down to his neck and stands.

"Hey," he says as Nick comes around to the gate. Logan waves and then uses his hand to shield his eyes as he steps out from under the trees and lets Nick onto the property.

"Morning," Nick says, pushing his sunglasses up.

Logan says, "So, where to?"

"Actually, can we take a minute? Before we go."

"Oh, yeah," Logan says, nodding. He looks over his shoulder. "Uh. Let's go in the back, though. I'll get you a soda. Come on."

They cut through the house, Logan stopping to grab a can of Diet Coke for Nick and passing it back to him. Once they get out to the backyard, Logan shrugs a few times and turns around to face Nick.

Nick says, "Thanks for this," holding up the soda.

"Of course," Logan says, and then clears his throat. "So. That was unexpected."

"Yeah," Nick says, dragging out the word and letting it fade. "Yesterday -- I didn't mean to just take off."

"Look, I want to say that that wasn't what I was going for," Logan says, cutting in on the tail end of Nick's sentence. "It wasn't me, like, inviting you over so I could move in on you or something."

"I didn't think that," Nick says, scratching his head idly. He's got another headband on, and he tugs at it, then lets his arm drop back to his side.

Logan says, "Good, because I don't usually do that. My parents wouldn't let me just have someone over like that to, you know. That was out of the ordinary for me."

"It's the same for me. We both live with our parents still, obviously," Nick says. "I usually ask people out. I'm -- I'm pretty straightforward."

"That's true," Logan says, holding eye contact so that Nick knows he's listening. He sees Nick tug at the strap on his bag and touch his hair again, idly. He still looks a little tired, probably a hazard of the hour, but Logan doesn't want to think to much about sleep, because then he thinks about them being in the same bed again.

"Yeah," Nick says, a sort of anticlimactic ending.

Logan shoves his hands in his jacket pockets and says, "Well, alright," even though they haven't solved anything. He shrugs and thinks about where they could go for breakfast. He starts with, "Well, we could head east again, back through West Hollywood," and doesn't get that part of the conversation off the ground as Nick comes forward, brushing their mouths together.

Logan really, really hopes everyone in his house is still sleeping, because he's not ready to have to explain this first thing in the morning. He's still preoccupied with playing catch-up himself, tilting his head and bringing one of his hands up to touch Nick's shoulder, opening his mouth wider. Nick's fingers graze the side of Logan's face, move back to touch Logan's hairline and then slip down against his neck. He touches Logan's side, and this close Logan can smell the strawberries again, a little embarrassed that he's been around Nick enough to know familiar scents, but under the circumstances, it might not be something he has to get bent out of shape about.

Nick's kissing Logan, and Logan kisses him back, apparently the kind of person who catalogues Nick's smells and has a secret list of times he's made Nick smile, and he's so _pathetic_ , but they still got together at nine in the morning to talk about their relationship anyway. Nick makes a short humming noise against Logan's mouth and sighs, and when he breaks the kiss, they keep their foreheads pressed together.

Licking his lips, Logan says, "Hey, uh. That felt kind of intentional."

Nick huffs out a breath, barely a laugh. He says, "A little bit, I think."

"Just checking," Logan says. He straightens up to see Nick better, staring at his mouth and then widening his scope. He sort of wants to lean in again already, and _that's_ pretty weird.

"I want to take to you breakfast," Nick says seriously.

Logan chuckles, failing to temper the smirk that cuts across his mouth. He says, "You don't have to go through a lot of trouble, dude. I think Toaster Strudels count as a balanced breakfast."

"No, I want to," Nick says. "I said, this is my thing. Let me do it."

"Okay, okay," Logan says, recoiling when Nick bumps a loose fist against his middle, grabbing his hand. He curls his own fingers around Nick's loosely, and he feels like a big, goofy kid, standing around at Junior prom again, but he's kind of excited about it for some reason too. "You definitely have a crush on Bobby McCallister."

Shaking his head, Nick says, "Stop. I'll take everything back and you can eat your Poptarts."

"No, let me have this! You were so into me when I was thirteen. That's bad-ass," Logan says. "Superman learned everything he knows from Batman after all."

"What are you talking about?"

"Nothing. I was telling someone about how you're -- you're like this Superman, it's -- forget it. It's dumb." Logan makes quick motions at his neck, killing the line of thought. He uses the moment of dead space that follows to crane his head in again. "Hey, so. So I can kiss you now, right? Is it messed up that I want to do that?"

Nick shrugs, which is about as good an answer as Logan was expecting, so he just goes for it. There's more confidence in it this time, and that's number three. Three kisses in the bag, and Logan's already thinking about how to get number four before the day is done. Logan did hours of research on Nick Jonas proving himself to be a great boyfriend, and now Logan's the one making out with him. Complete one-eighty.

He says that to Nick when he steps away again. "Want to know the weird thing? When I met you, I was trying to flirt with your girlfriend."

"Don't tell me that," Nick says, groaning, but a grudging smile flashes across his face for a second. "Dude."

"It's just funny how stuff happens," Logan says.

Nick waffles for a moment, and then says, "Yeah, we. We had to cool it for a reason, me and her. I was kind of, uh. She said I was distracted."

"Oh, yeah?" Logan says, frowning sympathetically, and the way Nick looks at him makes Logan roll the words through his mind again and again, until he realizes. "Oh! _Yeah_?"

"Something like that, I guess," Nick says. He rubs a hand across the back of his neck. "I don't know. I don't know, but clearly it's like --" He gestures between them, and Logan doesn't make him continue.

"I get it, yeah. So, yeah," he says, feeling foolish, and he reaches up and touches one of Nick's curls, pulls a little and lets it bounce back, because he's been kind of -- wondering. He's been wondering about doing that, which is as gay as the rest of it, so he might as well do what he wants now.

Nick shakes his head and says, "Let's eat. Are you hungry? I know where I want to take you."

"Sounds good to me," Logan says, because he's had enough of heart-to-hearts, but he also reaches for Nick's hand as they move back through the house and out of the front door.

He gets into the passenger seat, and Nick says, "Buckle up."

"Can I drive back after?" Logan asks.

"Yeah," Nick says, checking his rearview mirror and starting the car.

"Sweet," Logan says, pulling his phone out of his pocket and seeing a message from Dean about how all the clips of kids makes him feel like he has child pornography on his computer.

Logan writes, _pervert :D_

 _it's for a project i swear!_ Dean writes back a minute later. _food?_

In response, Logan types, _going out with Nick, actually._

 _gross_ , Dean sends, and then a second text follows it a few moments later, _tell him i said hi_

Logan glances at Nick but doesn't say anything. Instead he watches him hum along with the radio, and it makes Logan want to smile, which really is sick, so Dean's not wrong about his assessment. When he texts him again, Logan forgoes telling him that in favor of, _nick says he thinks you're perverted too_

Two minutes after, Logan gets a picture message with the text, _Hey tell Nick I got you guys something..._ that makes Logan choke on a laugh, so, really, nothing has drifted too far from how things usually are.

**Works inspired by this one:**

  * [Set my heart awhirl.](https://archiveofourown.org/works/368193) by [xcarex](https://archiveofourown.org/users/xcarex/pseuds/xcarex)




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